Spotlight on... Vietnam

Vietnam Airlines’ introduction of four weekly flights direct from London to Ho Chi Minh City and Hanoi has resulted in a flurry of hotel activity. Amanda Statham checks in.

Best for…romance
Be one of the first to stay at the hotly anticipated Banyan Tree Lang Co due to open on November 1 2012 and part of a new development on quiet Lang Co Bay in the Chan May region.

Pool villas overlook the aquamarine East Sea and jungle-clad mountains, diners hear the sound of waves lapping the shore at the candle-lit beachfront restaurant and (the icing on the cake) signature massages like the Royal Banyan, which includes a herbal pouch massage, feature at the 10-room Banyan Tree Spa.

In keeping with the up-market chain’s ethos, the design of the 49 villas is Vietnamese-influenced: think clay tile pitched roofs, courtyards, beamed wood ceilings and tactile furnishings like rattan chairs, lacquered tables, bamboo screens and silk cushions.
 
Best for…families
Banyan Tree Lang Co’s neighbour Angsana Lang Co is also opening in November and is a larger affair with 197 rooms and suites plus a 10-room Angsana Spa.

There are more dining options, such as an all-day French brasserie and beachfront restaurant, plus lots of activities, including a water sports centre, photography tours and kids’ club.

Its contemporary design will keep modernists happy, but the use of natural materials like bamboo, mother-of-pearl and eggshell lacquer gives the décor an earthy edge.

Both resorts are a good base from which to explore UNESCO world heritage sites like Hoi An town and the former imperial capital Hue.

Best for…food lovers
Another hotel set to open at the end of the year is Fusion Alya Hoi An which is being flagged up as Asia’s first culinary resort. No, this doesn’t mean you eat all day (though you could as there’s an all-day dining restaurant), instead you get involved in the food process, from spending time with local farmers in the rice fields to cooking classes and fruit carving.

If that all that sounds a little too much like hard work, you can always tuck into some expertly made spring rolls on a lounger by the infinity pool or sip cocktails made with exotic fresh fruits at the pool bar.

Guests can also enjoy a complimentary meal at the Fusion Lounge, a riverside café in Hoi An town, before heading back to a luxury pool villa for a dip beneath the stars.

A food experience is also on the menu of another new resort, Anantara Mui Ne, which is bound to appeal to gastro-loving guests: a cooking class with executive chef Alain Nguyen. You get to visit a vanilla plantation in the Mui Ne hills and pick some pods followed by a trip to a local fishing village to select seafood before heading back to the resort to learn how to whip up a culinary masterpiece. 

Best for…privacy 
One of Vietnam’s newest resorts, and one of the best: small, exclusive, with a private beach. More intimate than some of its rivals, Mia Nha Trang enjoys a sublime setting – the 50 green-roof villas are spread along the beachfront or hidden away in the gardens at the bottom of the jungle-coated Nha Trang Mountains. All are roomy, some with private pools, and if you’ve money to burn book one of two cliff-top Mia Suites, which boast a pool, garden, kitchen and dining room. If you’ve more dash than cash, however, opt for a garden villa with a king-size four-poster.

The Xanh Spa is memorable for its dragon fruit body wrap and coconut body scrub, guaranteed to leave your body beach-ready.

Best for…pampering
Thought a five-star resort with just 36 rooms and villas overlooking a white sand beach on a secluded island couldn’t get any better? Wrong. Chen Sea Resort & Spa Phu Quoc, Centara Boutique Collection   is opening Spa Cenvaree, a pampering palace worth flying half way around the world for. Three of the five treatment rooms are open-air and designed for couples and there’s also a massage bed on the beach. Top treatments include a Vietnamese body massage using indigenous oils and a herbal compress massage, perfect for easing away jetlag.

And it’s not all about the cosmetic, there are complimentary daily meditation and Tai Chi sessions too, ensuring guests leave with a beautiful mind and body.

Best for…seeing the sights

Bamboo Travel has launched a new 16-day Treasures Of Vietnam trip, spanning the mountains of the north bordering China to the Mekong Delta in the south. Highlights of the tour include exploring Hanoi, a two-day cruise along Halong Bay on a luxury 10-cabin junk, one night on the Victoria Express train to Sapa, UNESCO site Hoi An and the Cu Chi Tunnels in Saigon.